Kavango People

This large nation of riverine people has often been described as one of the friendliest in Africa. The Kavango people comprise five distinct tribal groups, of whom nearly all live along the Kavango River from Katwitwe in the west to Bagani in the east. A small number of the Kavango people live in the major drainage area in the south of the Kavango, while some are temporary residents alongside the main road between

Man rowing

Grootfontein and Rundu, where many hand-made goods are offered for sale.

The Kavango People practice agriculture on the narrow strip of fertile soil along the Kavango River, from which they harvest large numbers of fish. The men do the hard work of clearing and preparing the lands each year. The women do the planting and weeding and the men take over again to harvest and do the threshing. Maize and millet are supplemented with groundnuts, melons, pumpkins and various other vegetables. Cattle and goats are kept for their milk, meat and hides. Of the various methods of fishing, the most commonly practiced is the use of funnel-shaped fishing baskets which are set in the water and towards which fish are “herded” by people wading in the water.

The Kavango men are eager wood carvers and their works are sold all over Namibia. They carve dolfwood (Petrolcarpus angolensis) which grows in the Kalahari sandveld and produce a variety of ceremonial drums, musical instruments and household items. Ornaments, pot-plant stands, wall decorations, masks, kitchen utensils, tables and chairs, dug-out canoes, etc. are standard items. The women weave baskets and make clay pots and ornaments, which they eagerly sell to visitors. A number of new agricultural projects are being undertaken in the region, with a view to increase employment opportunities. These include the growing of sugar cane, man-made forests and grapes.

Different families live together in large homesteads protected by either a stockade of poles or a fence made of reeds. However, of late, young married couples are increasingly breaking with tradition, building their huts away from the family groups. Many Kavangos have found employment in towns and on farms, on the mines and in the fishing industry at Lüderitz and Walvis Bay.

The main tribes from west to east are the Kwangali, Mbunza, Shambio, Gciriku and Mbukushu. The Mbukushu reside on bothe the Kavango and the Caprivi sides of the Okavango River. There are also small numbers of San living in the region, who regard themselves as “Kavango”.